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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. deal — to handle
  4. scale — size or range
  5. cap — of ice
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. march — the month
  8. pit — a hole
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. cold — an illness
  11. stock — shares
  12. march — music
  13. stock — goods
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. row — a line
  16. cap — a hat
  17. row — to paddle
  18. scale — in music
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. march — the month
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. cap — a lid
  23. cold — not warm
  24. deal — an agreement

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com